1. Field
One embodiment of the present invention relates to a telephone system and a server apparatus which manages operations for a plurality of telephone exchange apparatuses connected with one another via an Internet Protocol (IP) network by using a server apparatus via the IP network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, an IP telephone system which interactively transmits and receives in real time images and voice as packet data has become widely used. This IP telephone system may perform inter-extension communication and the outside line originating and incoming calls for each telephone exchange apparatus to be connected to the IP network perform and also may perform extension communication and outside line outgoing and incoming calls among the telephone exchange apparatus via the IP network.
Meanwhile, also in the IP telephone system, to achieve a system with high function, computer telephony integration (CTI) is a possible approach. The CTI connects a server apparatus such as a personal computer to each telephone exchange apparatus via the IP network, makes the server apparatus perform a part of exchange processing of each telephone exchange apparatus and store and process voice and data, and may achieve an IP telephone system with a high function without having to enhance a processing function of each telephone exchange apparatus. The server apparatus has a function of providing an auto call distribution (ACD) service.
The ACD service configures one ACD group by including a plurality of extension terminals or a plurality of telephone exchange apparatuses, evenly distributes incoming calls from the outside line to the extension terminals within the ACD group, and then, may efficiently process the incoming calls by preventing concentration of incoming on a specified extension terminal.
In addition, regarding the foregoing system, a method for monitoring a process situation provided by the ACD service so as to assist, for example, call process work of a recipient (an Agent) in the ACD group, and to manage an operation state of the system has been strongly desired. Conventionally, a system is proposed, which connects a plurality of telephone exchange apparatuses to a computer through communication paths, manages extension member terminals as virtual terminals, bring the states of the virtual terminals into use states only when all the member terminals become in-use, and each telephone exchange apparatus notifies the state changes in the virtual terminals to the computer as needed (e.g., Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 6-334754).
However, in the aforementioned system, the telephone terminals connected to the telephone exchange apparatuses differing from one another on the IP network are brought into talk states among themselves, and then, if the talk states are changed, an ACD application software in the server apparatus also has to perform call-state management such as relay connection and disconnection on the IP network, and a process load on the call-state management by the ACD application software becomes severe.